Rye Pack 2 has been serving the youth and community of Rye, New York for over 80 years. With 125 scouts during the 2017-2018 school year, we were the largest Cub Scout Pack in Westchester and Putnam Counties — and almost certainly one of the most active.
New members can join at any time, although most tend to do so at the beginning of the school year. Boys and girls are both welcome as members of Pack 2 -- our dens are single-sex but our pack is newly co-ed.
We actively encourage participation by parents or guardians in all our activities (and in many cases, siblings), while recognizing that everyone has different skill sets, family situations and availability. This is supplemented by a dedicated group of parents who volunteer as formal leaders, after undergoing appropriate training and background checks.
We have Pack Meetings once a month during the school year (only). They are usually held on a Wednesday night from 7 PM to 8:30 PM at Christ’s Church in Rye, NY. These Pack Meetings always have some kind of a fun and educational activity, and often a special guest. Recent guests have included Animal Embassy, the ScienceTellers, a Halloween storyteller (held at a local, historic graveyard), the Rye Fire Department, Rye Police Department and local EMS, Rye High School's track and field coach and team, and representatives of our affiliated Boy Scout Troop, Rye Troop 2. In recent years we have also dedicated our December Pack Meeting to assembling lunches, toiletries and clothing for the homeless via Midnight Run. Parents or caregivers are asked to attend Pack Meetings for at least the younger scouts, but they often arrange carpool and take turns attending, and older scouts are sometime dropped off and picked up. We do, however, require that all scouts be on their best behavior, and this is where parents/caregivers can often be helpful!
Your scout will also have smaller Den Meetings with a group of approximately 5-12 others who are their own age/grade. These meetings are led by one or two of the scout's parents, who serve as Den Leader(s). Dens meet at locations, times and frequency of their choice, but most tend to meet for approximately 1-1.5 hours, about 1-2 times per month, at a Den Leader's home or a public facility like Rye Recreation. The Den Meetings meetings also include fun and educational activities, through which your son will have the pride of earning various awards and advancing through the ranks of scouting. Parents or caregivers are not required to attend the den meetings from 2nd grade (Wolf cub) onward, although they are always welcome.
We also offer a wide range of special, family-friendly activities on evenings and weekends throughout the year -- typically 1-2 per month. We try to target activities which are educational, character-building, generally unavailable through other organizations, and most of all -- FUN! Several revolve around the outdoors and also building/racing vehicles of various kinds. Here is an example of typical activities throughout the school year:
One family campout each season during the school year: fall, winter and spring (the winter campout is in cabins) -- these are held on a Saturday/Sunday at various locations within a 15-45 minute drive
A fall fishing derby at Camp Seton in Greenwich, CT
An event with dozens of scouting actives and hundreds of scouts called the "Thunderbird Games" at Croton Point Park
An Army Football Game on "Scout Day" at West Point
Cubmobile races (think "soap box derby")
The world-famous Pinewood Derby races
A pancake breakfast and tours at the Rye Fire House
Sleepover on a naval ship (USS Intrepid or USS Massachusetts) or on a square-rigger at Mystic Seaport
Model rocketry on the Rye Rec fields
Marching in Rye's Memorial Day Parade
Summer day camp at Camp Seton in Greenwich, CT
Summer resident (sleep away) camp at Camp Workcoeman in New Hartford, CT
It is worth noting that we don't "take attendance" at our meetings and events -- we understand that families and children are extremely busy these days, and can't be at everything. That much said, Cub Scouts is sort of like life -- the more you put into it the more you get out of it!
Christ’s Church is our chartering organization and generously provides us with the free use of their facilities, however Rye Pack 2 (and scouting more broadly) warmly welcomes families of all faiths.
We strive to keep the cost of scouting low, so that it's available to any interested children regardless of their financial circumstances. Our annual dues are currently $160/year and our weekend activities typically require only a reasonable fee for those who choose to participate. Financial assistance is also available -- please email cubmaster@ryepack2.com if the annual dues would be problematic for your family.
If you would like any further information on Rye Pack 2 or Cub Scouting more generally please don't hesitate to contact us!
